Bits and pieces of my life. I am a lifelong Christian. I have been married for over 39 years to Stan. No children. We have 3 Italian Greyhounds: Persephone, Dresden & Capodimonte and a calico cat named Binky. We have 9 nieces/nephews and 9 grandnieces/nephews whom we love. My hobbies are genealogy, reading, digital scrapbooking, history, dogs, homemaking. This is a personal blog and not a business. I share what interests me and I am not selling anything or making a profit.

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..........Contact me at Mom25dogs@gmail.com.........

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Luke 1 in the Amplified Version
Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to put in order and draw up a [thorough] narrative of the surely established deeds which have been accomplished and fulfilled in and among us. Exactly as they were handed down to us by those who from the [official] beginning of [Jesus' ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word [that is, of the doctrine concerning the attainment through Christ of salvation in the kingdom of God]. It seemed good and desirable to me, [and so I have determined] also after having searched out diligently and followed all things closely and traced accurately the course from the highest to the minutest detail from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus. [My purpose is] that you may know the full truth and understand with certainty and security against error the accounts (histories) and doctrines of the faith of which you have been informed and in which you have been orally instructed. In the days when Herod was king of Judea there was a certain priest whose name was Zachariah, of the daily service (the division) of Abia; and his wife was also a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they both were righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. But they had no child, for Elizabeth was barren; and both were far advanced in years. Now while on duty, serving as priest before God in the order of his division, as was the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter [the sanctuary of] the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And all the throng of people were praying outside [in the court] at the hour of incense [burning]. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zachariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear took possession of him. But the angel said to him, Do not be afraid, Zachariah, because your petition was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you must call his name John [God is favorable]. And you shall have joy and exultant delight, and many will rejoice over his birth. For he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord. And he must drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit even in and from his mother's womb. And he will turn back and cause to return many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God, And he will [himself] go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn back the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient and incredulous and unpersuadable to the wisdom of the upright [which is the knowledge and holy love of the will of God]-in order to make ready for the Lord a people [perfectly] prepared [in spirit, adjusted and disposed and placed in the right moral state]. And Zachariah said to the angel, By what shall I know and be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years. And the angel replied to him, I am Gabriel. I stand in the [very] presence of God, and I have been sent to talk to you and to bring you this good news. Now behold, you will be and will continue to be silent and not able to speak till the day when these things take place, because you have not believed what I told you; but my words are of a kind which will be fulfilled in the appointed and proper time. Now the people kept waiting for Zachariah, and they wondered at his delaying [so long] in the sanctuary. But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them; and they [clearly] perceived that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary; and he kept making signs to them, still he remained dumb. And when his time of performing priestly functions was ended, he returned to his [own] house. Now after this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and for five months she seculded herself entirely, saying, [I have hid myself] because thus the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He deigned to look on me to take away my reproach among men.

Now in the sixth month [after that], the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee named Nazareth, to a girl never having been married and a virgin engaged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, Hail, O favored one [endued with grace]! The Lord is with you! Blessed (favored of God) are you before all other women! But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled and disturbed and confused at what he said and kept revolving in her mind what such a greeting might mean. And the angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace (free, spontaneous, absolute favor and loving-kindness) with God. And listen! You will become pregnant and will give birth to a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great (eminent) and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His forefather David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob throughout the ages; and of His reign there will be no end. And Mary said to the angel, How can this be, since I have no [intimacy with any man as a] husband? Then the angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a shining cloud], and so the holy (pure, sinless) Thing (Offspring) which shall be born of you will be called the Son of God. And listen! Your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is now the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment. Then Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be done to me according to what you have said. And the angel left her. And at that time Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country to a town of Judah. And she went to the house of Zachariah and, entering it, saluted Elizabeth. And it occurred that when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud cry, and then exclaimed, Blessed (favored of God) above all other women are you! And blessed (favored of God) is the Fruit of your womb! And how [have I deserved that this honor should] be granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, the instant the sound of your salutation reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed (happy, to be envied) is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her from the Lord.The Visitation, Juan Correa De Vivar(1539 -1552), The Museum Del Prado
Mary's Magnificat

And Mary said,
My soul magnifies and extols the Lord.
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked upon the low station and humiliation of His handmaiden.
For behold, from now on all generations [of all ages] will call me blessed and declare me happy and to be envied!
For He Who is almighty has done great things for me-and holy is His name [to be venerated in His purity, majesty and glory]!
And His mercy (His compassion and kindness toward the miserable and afflicted) is on those who fear Him with godly reverence,
From generation to generation and age to age.
He has shown strength and made might with His arm;
He has scattered the proud and haughty in and by the imagination and purpose and designs of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled and satisfied the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty-handed [without a gift].
He has laid hold on His servant Israel [to help him, to espouse his cause], in remembrance of His mercy.
Even as He promised to our forefathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.

And Mary remained with her [Elizabeth] for about three months and [then] returned to her [own] home. Now the time that Elizabeth should be delivered came, and she gave birth to a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy on her, and they rejoiced with her. And it occurred that on the eighth day, when they came to circumcise the child, they were intending to call him Zachariah after his father. But his mother answered, Not so! But he shall be called John. And they said to her, None of the your relatives is called by that name. And they inquired with signs to his father [as to] what he wanted to have him called. Then Zachariah asked for a writing tablet and wrote, His name is John. And they were all astonished. And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak, blessing and praising and thanking God. And awe and reverential fear came on all their neighbors; and all thses things were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. And all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying Whatever will this little boy be then? For the hand of the Lord was [so evidently] with him [protecting and aiding him].

Zachariah's Benedictus
Now Zachariah his father was filled and controlled by the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,

"Blessed (praised and extolled and thanked) be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has come and brought deliverance and redemption to His people!
And He has raised up a Horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Helper, the Author of salvation] for us in the house of David His servant-
This is as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times [in the memory of man]-
That we should have deliverance and be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who detest and pursue us with hatred;
To make true and show the mercy and compassion and kindness [promised] to our forefathers and to remember and carry out His holy covenant [to bless, which is all the more sacred because it is made by God Himself].
That covenant He sealed by oath to our forefather Abraham:
To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our foes, might serve Him fearlessly in holiness (divine consecration) and righteousness (in accordance with the everlasting principles of right] within His presence all the days of our lives.

And you, little one, shall be called a prophet of the Most High;
For you shall go on before the face of the Lord to make ready His ways,
To bring and give the knowledge of salvation to His people in the forgiveness and remission of their sins.
Because of and through the heart of tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God,
A Light from on high will dawn upon us and visit [us] to shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
To direct and guide our feet in a straight line into the way of peace. "John The Baptist by Titian

And the little boy grew and became strong in spirit; and he was in the deserts (wilderness) until the day of his appearing to Israel [the commencement of his public ministry].

Matthew Chapter 1: 19-25 in the Amplified Version
And her [promised] husband Joseph, being a just and upright man and not willing to expose her publicly and to shame and disgrace her, decided to repudiate and dismiss (divorce) her quietly and secretly.
But as he was thinking this over behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary [as] your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of (from out of) the Holy spirit. She will bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus [the Greek form of the Hebrew Joshua, which means Savior], for He will save His people from their sins [that is, prevent them from failing and missing the true end and scope of life, which is God]. All this took place that it might be fulfilled which the Lord had spoken throught the prophet, Behold, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel-which, when translated, means, God with us. Then Joseph, being aroused from his sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him; he took [her to his sidea as] his wife. But he had no union with her as her husband until she had borne her firstborn Son, and he called His name Jesus.

Luke Chapter 2 in the Amplified Version
In those days it occurred that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole Roman empire should be registered. This was the first enrollment, and it was made when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all the people were going to be registered, each to his own city or town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David. To be enrolled with Mary, his espoused (married) wife, who was about to become a mother.
And while they were there, the time came for her delivery, And she gave birth to her Son, her Firstborn; and she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room or place for them in the inn.
And in that vicinity there were shepherds living [out under the open sky] in the field watching [in shifts] over their flock by night.
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone all about them, and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them,
"Do not be afraid;
"For behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people.
"For to you is born this day in the town of David a Savior,
"Who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord!
"And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]:
"You will find [after searching] a Baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."
Then suddenly there appeared with the angel an army of the troops of heaven (a heavenly knighthood), praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased [men of goodwill, of His favor]."
When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing (saying) that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and [by searching] found Mary and Joseph, and the Baby lying in a manger.
And when they saw it, they made known what had been told them concerning this Child. And all who heard it were astounded and marveled at what the shepherds told them. But Mary was keeping within herself all these things (sayings) weighing and pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.

Matthew 2:1-16 in the Amplified Version
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men [astrologers] from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, Where is He Who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east at it's rising and have come to worship Him.
When Herod the king heard this, he was disturbed and troubled, and the whole of Jerusalem with him. So he called together all the chief preists and learned men (scribes) of the people and anxiously asked them where the Christ was to be born. They replied to him, In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: And you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are not in any way least or insignificant among the chief cities of Judah; for from you shall come a Ruler (Leader) Who will govern and shepherd My people Israel. Then Herod sent for the wise men [astrologers] secretly, and accurately to the last point ascertained from them the time of the appearing of the star [that is, how long the star had made itself visible since its rising in the east]. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, Go and search for the Child carefully and diligently, and when you have found Him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship Him. When they had listened to the king, they went their way, and behold, the star which had been seen in the east in its rising went before them until it came and stood over the place where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they were thrilled with ecstatic joy.
And on going into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him.

Then opening their treasure bags, they presented to Him gifts-gold and frankincense and myrrh. And receiving an answer to their asking, they were divinely instructed and warned in a dream not to go back to Herod; so they departed to their own country by a different way. Now after they had gone, behold an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up! [Tenderly] take unto you the young child and His mother and flee to Egypt; and remain there till I tell you [otherwise], for Herod intends to search for the Child in order to destroy Him. And having risen, he took the Child and His mother by night and withdrew to Egypt and remained there until Herod's death. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, Out of Egypt have I called My Son. Then Herod, when he realized that he had been misled by the wise men, was furiously enraged, and he sent and put to death all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that territory who were two years old and under, reckoning according to the date which he had investigated diligently and had learned exactly from the wise men.

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

I got on the Internet and found some great ideas for wreaths! I was looking for wreaths that weren't just red and green. If you don't feel confident in making your own, you can buy wreaths. I feel intimidated by the thought of making fresh wreaths but I enjoy putting artificial wreaths together.

I liked this odd shape and the different colors...not just the normal read and green.

This wreath is different. They used scraps of wool, felt and little knitted squares. Notice the red buttons for holly berries?

Do you have some Christmas ornaments that are no longer needed on the tree? Before throwing them away, make up a Christmas wreath and use it for a few seasons. I thought this one was really pretty being gold, pink and white. Can you find the tiny creche?

This wreath is made from plastic shopping bags. That's an interesting recycling idea! Again, the colors aren't the normal reds and greens.

Another beautiful wreath made of Christmas ornaments and bead garland. I love the fresh, modern colors on this one!

This one has natural aspects to it (although it may be artificial). Peacock feathers, nuts, pomegranate and the white poinsetta.

This one is not for me. I can't imagine putting garbage on my front door! But you have to admit it's unusual! Talk about recycling and "going green" !

This is a beautiful wreath. I like the lighter green and fuzzy ivy mixed with the evergreen. The tiny crabapples give a nice red and the red and gold berries fill it out nicely. I also liked how they wove the ribbon throughout the wreath.

Another recycling idea. This little wreath is made up of used CD's. The shiny CD surface is so reflective.

I loved the lavendar color on this one. I think it upgrades it and makes it more formal although it's a very simple wreath.

This wreath is another nice change of color. The burgundy, fuschia and pink roses mixed with the deep purple berries is very attractive.

This wreath has a frosty look with the white ribbons and the frosted pincones and pink balls. A lovely wreath!

This one is not for me but being made of feathers makes a different wreath. Brand new it's very nice looking but the dyed feathers can get dusty and faded. I know I may be silly but how do they get those feathers? Are there naked birds freezing to death somewhere?

This fresh wreath is sophisticated. With a base of magnolia leaves and eucalyptus and cedar to fringe it. Then there are crabapples, pinecones and berries.This wreath is a recycled wreath. You cover wrapping paper cardboard tubes (or paper towel or toilet paper cardboard tubes) with green felt, then cut in 2" circles. Add a fringe of green felt and red pom poms.

I don't have children but I've been to a lot of yard sales and I've seen the multitude of tiny toys that kids seem to accumulate. Here is one way to re-use some of the tiny toys that you were thinking about tossing. I thought this was imaginative and one that kids would love to make and have. I would assume that these toys are hot glued or wired on with floral wire.

I bet children would love this candy wreath too! I guess they are hot glued on? Or maybe have a pin stuck through the wrapper into the styrofoam? Someone did a lot of work.

I found this one on "Pete's Taxidermy" site. I was almost afraid to look in case there was some poor stuffed animal on the wreath somewhere. But there isn't. Someone had a clever idea of using feathers and pinecones. This might appeal to the hunters in the family.

I prefer my wreaths completely filled out with greenery but this might appeal to you. The greenery is attractively arranged.

I like this fresh wreath. They used boxwood instead of the usually evergreen. It looks like they used baby's breath and red sedum.

Here's an idea! After you've made fresh orange juice, use the rinds to make a wreath! Actually this is very attractive. I like the orange, camellia leaves and evergreen. It's a blujeans and mink look!